Counter saver for die printing presses



pri 29, 1924i, 1,491,977:

E. w. THoMBs COUNTER SAVER FOR DIE PRINTING PRESSES Filed Jan. 3l. 1924 a T57] /3\ FLT/ff y NEY Patented Apr. 29, 1924.

"UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. i

COUNTER SAVER FOR DIE PRINTING PRESSES.

Application led January 31, 1924. Serial No. 689,628.

To all 'whom t may cof/wem:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK WALLACE THouBs, of West Natick, county of Middlesex, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have inventedk an Improvement in Counter Sav-v neously embossing by means of an engraved die and counter die; and the object of the invention is to save the counter-die for repeated use. For, according to present practice in the art of die-printing, the counter, which is cut by hand in the surface of a sheet of cardboard, serves for only a single printing, a new counter being made each time the die is used. The reason for this is that, prior to the present invention, no practical or satisfactory means have been devised whereby the counter, after it has been removed from the press, can be replaced in exact registration with the die.

The necessary exactness of registration is secured, according to 'present practice, by forming the counter from an impression made from the die upon the cardboard sheet after `both the die and the sheet on which the counter is to be cut have been fixed in their Working positions in the press. Thus the steel die having been locked in its place in the bed of the press and given a coating of ink, the sheet of cardboard is laid upon it, the back of said sheet having been previously coated with a non-liquid glue. The plunger is then brought down upon it, thereby making upon the cardboard sheet an impression of the design or lettering engraved upon the die, and

at the same time causing the sheet to ad-` here to the plunger. The plunger is then removed from its pistom and the cardboardV is cut out by hand in such manner as toy leavea counter of the engraving of the die, Y

the counter being in relief. The plunger is then replaced, and the-printing can now proceed. When the printing is finished the counter is scraped olf the plunger, and is of no use thereafter, because of the practical impossibility of resetting both die and counter in the exact positions they must occupy, relative the one to the other, for successful use. Hence, wheneverv and as often as the die isre-used, a new counter must be made. This is an operation requiring much skill and care, and consuming much time, particularly in the case of elaborate designs. Therefore a verylarge part of the expense of a re-printing is the cost of making another counter; and it is the object of the present invention to save this expense by providing simple and Vpractical means wherebythe die and its counter can be removed from the press and at any time thereafter be replaced in the exact relative positions necessary fo-r printing. A I

To this end, according t0 the present invention, the cardboard sheet wherein the co-unter-dieis cut is not fixed directly to the plunger, but to a removable support, which may be a metal sheet or plate, and this Vsupport is provided with registration devices designed to co-operate wit-h corresponding devices upon a die-locating frame, or equivalent Vmechanism, as hereinafter described in` detail, and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specication.

In said drawings- Y, Fig. I is atop plan view of the die-locat- V ing frame, and Fig. Pis a front elevation of the same;

Fig. II is an end viewV in elevation of said frame, and FigIILL is' a detail of the underside of the pin-supporting spring;

Fig. III is a plan view of the counter-. 'Y

support, showing the position of the counter by dotted lines.

Y In the embodiment of my invention shown in the drawings, the die-locating means consists of a frame formed by the two steel,...

bars 12, 13 fastened together at right angles. By means of this angle-frame thel die-block 10 (dotted lines Fig. I) can be set always in identically Y the same working position.

When so positioned it is locked firmly inr .n

place by the usual means.

The front bar 12 of the die-locating frame is a permanent part of the die-carrier; but the side bar 13 is detachable. It servesonly for the purpose of locating the die and its counter die, and is removed during the operation of printing.

The means whereby the bars 12, 13 are attached together must be such as to insure that their relative position will be always the same. To this end they are formed at their meet-ing ends with flanges adapted to overlap, and iitting accurately together. Furthermore, bar 13 has a projecting lip 15, which ts a correspondingly beveled surface on the -flanged part of bar 12;(Fig. II).

The overlapping ends of the two bars are fastened together, when a die is to be located, by screw11,the.lipY 15 actingV to draw the bar 12 tightly against the vertical Yend of bar 13. I Y

Bar 13 has two vertical pins 14, which pass through holes in saidV bar, and are attached one at each end of a flat spring 16, which is fastened by screw'21 to the underside of the bar. `Being thus spring-mount ed :the lpins 14 can be depressed by the Vplunger when itV descends in the act of taking an sheet. v f v The counter-support 17 may be'made of a metal sheet orplate of a thickness only suii- Vimpressioniof the ldie upon the'rcounterlcient to give it the proper rigidity. Itis providedat one end withholes 18,19, corresponding ezactly in position with the `registration pins 14 ofthe die-locating device: Ithas been-found desirable to make one of these'holes', as 19, slightly, oblong in shape, the greaterdiameter being in a line drawn through the a'Xes of 'the two holes. This allows for a slightvariation in respect to thel distance between v'the two-holes, while insuring that the counter-support 17y will always occupy eXactly the same relative position when the holes are fitted over the pins.

` Theoperation is as follows: Side barY13 is placed in position and fastenedto'front bar 12 by Vscrew 11. By "means of the rightangle frame 'thus' formed the die 10 is locatedin its exact'worlin'g position, 'and is locked in place bythe devices commonlyemyployed for that purpose. VTheface` ofthe Ydie having received, a coating of inlgthe counter-support 17 with the cardbo'ardrsheet 20 (dotted lines, Fig. III) attached' thereto is laid face downward upon 'the die, holes 18, 19 fitting over pins 14, the back of vsup- Y* port 17 having been previously coatedwith Vnon-'liquid glue.

to descend, thereby taking animprint ofthe engraving'ofthedie'upon the cardboard 20,

The plunger is now caused .and atthe same time causing the support'17 to v'adhere to the plunger. The plunger is now removed, and the counter-die is formed yby cutting away the cardboard lsheet-in the usual way. The'plnnger isr'then replaced,V sidebar 13 is detached and removed, and.V The reason Vfor the 'press is ready for use. making bar 13 removable is thatY the pins y14 sponding regi Awould interfere withfthe operation. of the plunger with the counter in its eXact'work'- l ing position with respectfto the die. Having now described my said invention, and the preferred embodiment of it-in'fpractical form, I claimz-k i 1- A. counter-saver for presses, comprising in combination with dielocating mechanism for setting the die always in the same position, a` removable counter-support, both die-locating mecha` nism and counter-support being provided with registration devices, substantially as described. Y

die-printing A 2. A counter-saver 1 for Ydie'`pri11ting Y presses, comprising the combination'of dielocating vmechanism having a detachable member provided with registration devices, and a removable counter-support "having corresponding registration devices, substan-V tiallyfas described.

a The "Combination of a die leaningV frame Vhaving depressible registration Apins, and a removable vcounter-supporthaving corresponding holes, substantially as vdescribed. f l f 4. Thev combination of a. .die-locating frame liavingadetachable -member carryingk vspring-supported registration pins, and a `removable counter-support having correas described. n n l v 5. For a die-'printing press, a removable counter-plate or support, having the 'counter-sheet attached thereto, and provided with registration devices, substantiallyas described'.

In testimony whereof, vI have signed my name to this specification.

stration means, substantially i FREDERICKWALLACE THoMs. n s Y 

